For much of Game 1, the good news for the Kings was that their fourth line was arguably their best line. That was also the bad news for the Kings. For long stretches of the game, the line of Brad Richardson, Colin Fraser and Jordan Nolan seemed to be the only line skating and hitting with any type of consistent intent and aggression. The Kings will need better from their other three lines in Game 2, but they’ll also be thrilled if they get a duplicate performance from Fraser’s line. Nolan, in particular, had an outstanding game — more on him later — and Fraser couldn’t have picked a more opportune time to score his first-ever playoff goal, as he gave the Kings a 1-0 lead in the first period.
Darryl Sutter loves to roll his four lines as much as possible, and Sutter had no problem doing that in Game 1. The effort of the fourth line was appreciated by players such as Jeff Carter.
CARTER: “They were excellent for us. I think they’ve been great, all playoffs long, and they haven’t got really the credit they deserve. We’re hearing a lot about the Devils’ fourth line, but our guys have been just as good. They obviously had a huge goal for us last night, to get us going. They created pressure all night. They probably had, out of all the lines, the most chances out of anybody. So it’s obviously nice to see.’’
Fraser, for instance, had 11 minutes, 28 seconds, of ice time, his highest total of these playoffs. The overtime period factors into that, but Sutter also made a conscious decision to play that line more…
SUTTER: “I think when you have time off, it’s interesting from a coaching standpoint. You think you can shorten your bench because guys are fresher. But really when you have time off, the first thing I could see last night (was), we did have some sluggish guys, and it was at the top end of our skill set, in terms of players. It doesn’t bother me to play — I don’t call them our fourth line, I call it Colin Fraser and whoever is playing with him. So if they’re on, they can play against anybody. If you look at it, the (Fraser) goal last night was against Zajac’s line. You know what, I’m confident whoever is playing with Fraz, as long as they’re doing the job. There’s nights where maybe the other team is playing their top line or their top two lines more and you’ve got to be careful. But at the same time, it’s still about performance and the quality play. (In Game 1 it) worked out.’’
Who new? Fraser a “throw in” from the Smyth trade…
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Jgomez Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 8:41 am
@Steve S., What a hard worker. He was an after thought in the beginning of the season and as soon as his opportunity came, he went all out. Really appreciate players who give it 100% all the time. LETS GO KINGS!
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Harry Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 8:44 am
@Jgomez,
Reminds me of Armstrong!
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Donald_S Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:06 am
@Harry,
Rich has also made this comment that he is a lot like Armie in many ways.
Steve Jensen Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:28 am
@Harry,
+1
DesertKing Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 8:43 am
@Steve S.,
(sung to “Thumbelina”)
Tambellini, Tambellini,
stupid little thing
You let Fraser go
Now he will get a ring
Tambellini, Tambellini
slimy little thing
You tried to screw LA
But helped bring the Cup to the Kings
Tambellini, Tambellini,
Lying little thing
You made up a lot of stories
Now you ain’t got nothing.
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LA_1968 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:39 am
@DesertKing, Yes, poetic justice for that flake in Edmonton. When they go to trade some skill for a d-man this summer, I hope he takes it in the shorts.
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Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com) Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:33 am
@Steve S.,
My comment from October 12th, 2011
“He’s a bottom 6 center who drops the gloves and can chip in a few goals. Injuries have put him in a negative career trajectory though. I actually think he could be a good replacement for Lewis if he struggles. I’d think Lewis is much faster but Fraser is tough and actually can score so why not keep him at 875k?”
Yeah, I guess he CAN score!
Here’s the original post (my apologizes to KC23 in advance!)
http://lakingsinsider.com/2011/10/12/fraser-ready-for-opportunity/#comment-783554
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simonsez Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 11:40 am
@Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com),
Wow you’re a regular Nostradamus.
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KC23 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 1:16 pm
@Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com), No problem admitting I was dead wrong on that as well as many other things this year.
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Weasel Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:41 am
@Steve S.,
Not just a throw-in……a replacement throw-in
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Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com) Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:45 am
@Steve S.,
There’s also this from the day before his debut…
“Consider too that he, along with Parse before he came back and Hunter were the 5th line for quite a few practices. Coupled with the extensive ice time during practice and quality linemates during those drills, he certainly has put in the time. Add that to his decent amount of experience, including winning a fricken Stanley Cup (you know, the thing we ALL covet) I actually expect him to be quite effective right out of the gate. At the very least, play responsible and make life hell for the opposing line.”
http://lakingsinsider.com/2011/11/09/frasers-long-road-back-about-to-end/#comment-850199
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puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:00 am
@Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com), I think you pretty much nailed it Waves ! Man has he been a big help this season! I think alot of us just assumed he would be released when the season started to make room for some younger guys.
Boy, were we wrong !
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Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com) Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:22 am
@puck73,
By the way puck, that was the thread that started the infamous ‘I’ll pass that along’ comment by TM and it WAS about Fraser!
http://lakingsinsider.com/2011/10/12/fraser-ready-for-opportunity/#comment-783525
“I don’t call them our fourth line, I call it Colin Fraser and whoever is playing with him” I love how much respect Sutter gives Fraser here.
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Pili Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:16 am
@SirKingsly, I like the mindset of identifying the lines by player rather than order of importance or stature. Sutter does a lot of things very well.
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Remember when he was a throw in that was supposed to be cut? What a strange season, makes this run even more enjoyable.
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The fourth line (the “Fraz Line”)has been rockin’ since the start of these playoffs. Bringing mad energy, changing momentum and very deserving of the goal they earned.
Keep up this energy boys and set the pace for the rest of the team to follow.
Is Saturday here yet?
GKG !
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paige Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 11:27 am
@Pucker, Since before the start of the playoffs. My all-time favorite Kings 4th line
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I was wondering if NHL network is going to show the top ten Kings moments from the past season. I thought the CBS broadcasters in the 80′s during the Magic Bird years was one sided , omg these guys take the cake. I wish the rest of the Kings would learn from Fraser and one time the puck, if you get the puck on net quickly you catch the goalie moving, thats when there are holes to sneak the puck through. Similar was Kopi’s shorty vs Coyotes in game 5. If you hesitate for a split second the goalie is in position again. Lets go Kings.
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chuy Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 3:16 pm
@brian spain, Completely agree that the Kings get no respect. You would think the Cinderalla story would get more love. We only had Quick in the all star game. TEAM hockey baby. Quickly will also reduce the defense blocking shots.I say let the Fraser line start all the power plays, they are hungry!
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I agree that Fraser and Nolan have been great. Richardson – not so much. Clifford, anyone?
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nykingfan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:17 am
@rick,
Disagree.
There’s no way in the world that having 2/3 of our 4th line playing well can dominate anyone, especially in the Stanley Cup finals.
It may not be obvious, but Ritchie did his job well.
there’s absolutely no need to be changing opr tinering with anything.
The name of the game is winning and that’s what we’ve been doing with the same guys night after night.
I love Cliffy, but I don’t want to see him playing at all in this series
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FM3 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 12:19 pm
@nykingfan, Richardson’s speed helps that line out a lot and he is tenacious. I love how Clifford plays but, right now, its best to keep him where he’s at. If someone gets hurt, bring him in. Its all about the team and Clifford knows that. Besides, you gotta give Richardson some serious love for coming back so quick from his surgery. The dude wanted to be back big time and hasn’t been a liability at all.
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nykingfan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 12:57 pm
@FM3,
Exactly it’s all about team and that line as a unit is going so well. Why messs with success?
Weasel Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:42 am
@rick,
Not yet-but it is a luxury to be able to make changes. Richardson is a small guy who hits hard (Granato!) — but he wears down too. So if he gets nicked put Cliffy in for a game so he can heal up.
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2hitnik Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 12:35 pm
@rick, Richie isn’t going to beat a guy body on body like Nolan or Clifford will. He is not afraid to put his body on you, but his advantage is speed. I think he is the fastest Kings player, Brownie says it is Lewis. In either event when the puck is dumped in he is often the first one in pursuit. His pressure sets up the forecheck.
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Harty Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 1:11 pm
@rick, agreed put cliffy in, pull Richie out.
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Northern Fan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 1:53 pm
@Harty, Richie did a hellova lot more than Carter did out there. Carter is a pussy on the boards and half the time doesn’t care if he gets to the puck first. Totally over rated. Give those who work hard and perform a break. Ever play the game??
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Who was the other guy we were going to get before Fraser in the trade??? I can’t remember…
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vinny Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:09 am
@Lake Forest, bru..tuzzi?..bru…ierre?..bru..cares! got the fraz
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Real 7 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:14 am
@Lake Forest, Gilbert Brule….now with PHX…
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puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:02 am
@Real 7, Correct. Boy, did Lombardi luck out on this one when you consider he was asking for Brule!
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PurpleBlacknGold Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:15 am
@Lake Forest, Wasn’t it Brule, the guy who ended up with the Cryotes?
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Weasel Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:08 am
@PurpleBlacknGold,
What odds do you think Vegas would have quoted if you had said you wanted to bet on Fraser playing against Brule for the WC championship before the season started?
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PRMan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:15 am
@Weasel, When they were both still on Edmonton? Probably pretty high.
Its amazing to me to listen to all the pundits, reporters, analysts, who keep saying that the devils let one get away and that the next game the devils will be so much better, blah, blah, blah. wish someone would realize the kings did not play well either and they will play much better too . . . east coast bias is sickening.
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luckyluc13 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:12 am
@rt16, I have to agree.ESPN,NHL NETWORK both suck as far as Kings coverage,it’s all about the Devils.And our own Fox Sports West….well,this ain’t Baseball
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rt16 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:19 am
@luckyluc13, i mean its like the devils series to lose in these folks minds . . . thank god for barry melrose. he’s the only pro-king guy out there in the whole bunch.
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PRMan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:16 am
@rt16, JR and Mike Keenan have picked us throughout as well.
Lake Forest Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:00 am
@rt16, Only way to make it exciting….
It’s like the news, it’s only dramatic news being reported. nothing more…..
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Bonvivant1 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 12:46 pm
@rt16, I don’t know what you’ve been listening to but there is a ton of positive coverage on NHL channel. They talk a lot about individual King players and the system.
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IceGuy Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 4:26 pm
@rt16,
You’ve got to remember three things.
1. We heard the same thing in Vancouver.
2. We heard the same thing in St. Louis.
3. We heard the same thing in Glendale.
Now, we get to hear the whole East side of the League say them same thing.
The simple truth is that we’ve been there, heard that. I feel confident in saying that the Kings are already inside the Devils heads. You know for a fact that little doubt Gremlin is rattling around inside the whole Jersey oran-eye-zation.
“Oh, Geez, are we next?”
Lou, Peter, Zach, yes, you ARE next.
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It is so nice to see a player who works as hard as Fraz does get some well deserved praise!
Let’s go Kings! Here’s to Fraz getting his 2nd and 3rd career playoff goals on Saturday
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It’s all about effort and the Kings have shown all playoff long when you give more effort the the opposition you will come out ahead 99% of the time. GKG!!!
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Nolan….frazier…..king……brown…..quick……kopi……all players that dl shouldnt get credit for…..
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nykingfan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:18 am
@neil,
Why wouldn’t DL get credit for those guys?
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Deader2818 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:34 am
@neil,
Nolan and King were drafted under DL….. Fraser was part of the Smyth trade.
What are you talking about? lol
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neil Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:39 am
@Deader2818, nolan and king wasnt coming up till ds scouting them…..frazier wasnt dl s choice in the trade….quick…brown…kopi….all dave taylors picks
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fsd1 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:49 am
@neil, FIRE DL! geeze
Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com) Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:49 am
@neil,
Lombardi was looking to get those guys in before Sutter went to Manchester. He didn’t want to do it this year but felt the team mix was not right. What do you think, Sutter went back there and just watched a game and picked them? LOL.
King Alex Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:54 am
@neil, I don’t get the whole credit this but not that. We win and we lose as a team. We are 3 wins away from hockey’s holy grail and if we pull it off, credit goes to the entire organization and no Kings fan will forget what Dave Taylor did for this franchise.
puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:04 am
@neil, Technically, you are 100% correct in everything you just posted. That being said, DL gets credit as well for over seeing all that.
nykingfan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:09 am
@neil,
your points make no sense.
who forced DL to take Fraz? I don’t recall anyone putting a gun to his head and telling him he had to take him back. It was a trade that was made. Brule may have been his original choice, but he was hurt.
Brown/JQ/Kopi..are you serious? He certainly could have traded all of them and brought in “his” guys. Instead he signs Brownie to a reasonable contract which allowed him to sign Kopi to a long term deal and will also help him sign JQ to a long term contract.
Every player on the Kings roster is DL’s responsibility..good or bad.
He gets full credit for where the Kings are and where we’re going!
fsd1 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:42 am
@neil, Tehy are all here right? So DL does get the credit. They could be playing for someone else.
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Fraser is awesome!!
Nolan is incredible!!
Richardson is pulling it off, we still need to get you a new nickname!!
Hey Smyth, hope you are watching!! Eat your heart out, aahhh just EAT IT!!!
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LA_1968 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:45 am
@King Cobra, About Smyth… He should be eating it but he loves Edmonton so much. Sad.
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Go Go Fraser!
Go Kings Go!
Toe Pick!
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Posted this on a previous thread, just want to make sure everyone gets a chance to take a look. I didn’t make this video but it is epic.
http://t.co/bI4ONAL3 If you haven’t seen this yet, you have to watch it! get pumped!!!!!! This is the cup!!!!
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fsd1 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:47 am
@elijah, where is the one with the numbers 1-16 getting x’d out? cant seem to find it
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elijah Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:58 am
@fsd1, i haven’t seen that one
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SC4SC Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:51 am
@elijah, WOW!!! That is a great video. I hope they use that as their opening to game 3. Everytime I watch the last minute of game 4 against St. Louis I get all teared up. I have watched everyones take on youtube and I will post mine as well on youtube from section 115 row 12. I have never cryed so much in the last 3 weeks. “Livin the Dream”
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Crozitar Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 3:35 pm
@elijah, Great great video. Goose bumps.
GKG!
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IceGuy Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 4:46 pm
@elijah,
Very, VERY well done piece.
Note to Kings: Play that on the board before the Kings come out onto the ice for Game 3. No hoopla. No light show. No music.
David Courtney, “Ladies and gentlemen, Now is the Time”.
Play that, and watch the roof rattle off the top of Staples Center as OUR Los Angeles Kings take the ice.
Just. Do. It.
PS – The shot of Frazer bleeding is absolutely EPIC.
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Here’s Fraser’s photo shoot from November 4th, about a week before he got his chance at the 4th line center spot…
http://youtu.be/jfHHgZ57zb4?hd=1
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puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:09 am
@Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com), Oh? I’ll pass that along.
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SLIM Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 1:26 pm
@Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com),
Just shows to go ya!
He will never play for Kings….Wow..
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Denis Potvin had a very insightful comment yesterday about Fraser’s goal. We all saw how Nolan stripped Greene of the puck and centered it to Fraser, but the reason he was able to do so is that Brad Richardson had taken away Greene’s passing option to the other defenseman.
I never noticed that, and I haven’t heard anyone else give Brad Richardson credit for that goal.
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LA_1968 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:52 am
@Jon G, Yeah, he did. Richardson skated down the left wing while Nolan was dealing with Greene. He stopped just before coming close to the Greene Nolan situation. When Greene started to go away from Nolan Richardson forced him to turn around and Nolan did the rest.
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puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:10 am
@LA_1968, Nice to see former Arkansas Head Basketball coach Nolan Richardson finally getting some ink !
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Jon G Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 12:32 pm
@puck73, There’s only one Brad on this team, and that’s Brad Doty.
Paul Armbruster (KingsNewsDaily.com) Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 9:52 am
@Jon G, Interesting. Always a team element, right? (I’m using ‘right’ all the time now because of Sutter. It’s fun, right?) Still though, Greene got stripped by Nolan. Nolan made that play happen all the way.
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Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Edmonton for pulling a fast one on us!!!!
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Speaking of Carter….. they for sure could use more from him. I don’t remember one single high % chance that he had in the first game. Hopefully he can step it up. They got him to score and he needs to do some more of that to get the team over the hump.
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puck73 Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:13 am
@number 6, He has helped out plenty since he came here. Even if he is not lighting the lamp, The team is 25-6 with him in the lineup. The guy is a better forechecker and backchecker then I realized, and he has also help balance out the team, and put guys in better roles to be successfull.
In other words….I dont miss Mr. Minus 81 at all, do you?
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Crown Royal Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:34 am
@puck73,
Agree. Carter has a lot of speed and has to be accounted for on the ice by the oppoistion. He gives the entire lineup a differnt look. He’s defintely an assest out there.
I always hoped JJ would reach his potential which is considerable but he should have been better than he is by now. The Kings are better team with Carter than JJ.
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Northern Fan Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 2:01 pm
@puck73, there talking about JEFF Carter. You must have have him confused with someone else.
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What I like about Kings is that in this final, the whole team plays really well. Perhaps not every player every single game will stand out (it is impossible so anyway), but there is always at least one player who can stand out and make a surplus. This is really valuable, since the opponents cannot predict where the dangers will come from. They may cover one or even two lines, but they cannot cover them all. And everybody, no, I mean every single cell of any player just lives for this finals. What a team. Just love it sooooooo much !!!
It is good to be Kings fan now !!!
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plywood Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 11:54 am
@Patrice, I give DS a lot of credit for this Kings attitude. He has made a strong point ofmaking one player the “star” of each game and has continually stressed the team effort or lack of effort, and even brings up the other teams good players when asked about his–think the question about Quick and he returns commenting on Brdeur. DS is a master at keeping this a team effort.
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plywood Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 11:56 am
@plywood, “NOT” making one player the star.
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Patrice Reply:
June 1st, 2012 at 10:54 pm
@plywood, Couldn’t agree more with you on DS
I like the way this team works now and attitude of all players is just so great.
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Sheesh again–He has made a point of “NOT making one player the star of the game. 66 and I still don’t proofread.
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The 4th line was our best line. Second line had some good chances. I thought Kopi and Brown were mostly invisible throughout the game. Obviously the first line was key to the OT goal but Brown did cough up the puck just inside the zone.
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I saw him (Fraser) in training camp, on the ice, with a few coaches, in his “non-contact” jersey before the main practice took place. According to more than a few people on here, he was destined to be bought out and released, once he was medically cleared. I thought, man, this sucks for him.
I saw Dave Taylor in his first camp with the KINGS (all 165 lbs of him) get constantly pummelled, and beat up. I turned to my friend and said that this guy will never make it.
Since then, I have learned never judged a player based on his size or lack of physicality.
You’ve got to consider and find out what’s inside him.
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for all those that had a bad game let’s just chalk it up to nerves, we know they are better than that for the most part and hopefully will be back in form for G2 tomorrow, GKG, and like others have posted good to have a rest and recovery for my liver, L.A. Live here i come.
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